When Apple first
announced the MacBook Air, it was met with oohs and ahs form Apple fans and
non-Apple fans alike. The Air is a very attractive notebook, even if it does
have a wealth of odd issues prospective owners have to live with.

Even though the MacBook Air has generated lots of praise for
its design and thin construction, the notebook has taken a few hits for its
lack of a user-replaceable battery, meager performance, lack of more USB ports
and a missing GbE connection onboard.

According to Ars
Technica, even with the caveats of MacBook Air ownership, the demand
is apparently still high leading to long wait times for shipping and frequent
sell outs at Apple stores in large markets. Amazon says its MacBook Air orders
won’t be shipping until March 16 and Best Buy has been low on systems as well.

It makes sense that Apple resellers like Amazon and Best Buy
would be low on stock since Apple is having a hard time keeping its own retail
stores supplied with the Air. Some stores in and around Boston were out of
stock and store employees said that some would be Air owners were opting to
spend the significantly higher price on the SSD equipped Air because it tends
to be in stock longer.

Apple stores in large markets like LA, New York City and
Chicago get daily shipments and are still not able to keep a regular stock of
the Air. However, it seems that Apple fans in smaller markets may have an
easier time getting their hands on the MacBook Air -- one Apple Store in
Indianapolis reported that it had more than enough stock to meet demand.

The real question behind the shortages of MacBook Air
systems is if the demand is really that high, or perhaps did Apple simply not
order enough of the machines making them hard to keep in stock. Whatever the
reason the Air is hard to get in some areas, there is little doubt that the
computer has proven to be surprisingly popular despite the issues
it may have.

"Mac OS X is like living in a farmhouse in the country with no locks, and Windows is living in a house with bars on the windows in the bad part of town." -- Charlie Miller